Light driver system with wired sensor board

ABSTRACT

A sensor board includes a plurality of sensors configured to sense parameters from the environment and to generate sensory outputs, a transmission circuit configured to receive sensory output from the plurality of sensors and to generate sensor data for transmission to a light driver through a wired connection, and a regulator configured to receive a variable input voltage and to generate a regulated voltage for powering the plurality of sensors and the transmission circuit.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application claims priority to, and the benefit of, U.S.Provisional Application No. 63/152,743 (“ECONOMICAL WIRELESS LED DRIVERCONTROL SYSTEM SOLUTION WITH WIRED ALS, OCC, AND VARIOUS OTHERSENSORS”), filed on Feb. 23, 2021, the entire content of which isincorporated herein by reference.

This application also claims priority to, and the benefit of, U.S.Provisional Application No. 63/152,745 (“LOW-COST ANALOG ALS AND OCCSENSOR DESIGN”), filed on Feb. 23, 2021, the entire content of which isincorporated herein by reference.

The present application is also related to U.S. Patent Applicationentitled “LIGHT DRIVER SYSTEM WITH MODULAR CONTROLLER BOARD” (attorneydocket 202724 (302461-00198)), filed on even date herewith, which claimspriority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Nos.63/152,743 and 63/152,745, both filed on Feb. 23, 2021, the entirecontents of which is incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD

Aspects of the present invention are related to a light driver controlsystem.

BACKGROUND

Existing sensor control lighting solutions provide fragmented systemswhich incorporate costly and repetitive circuitry that is increasinglymore complex for lighting systems with a large number of nodes.

In the related art, lighting solutions may incorporate external sensorswith dedicated wireless modules and power circuitry that are needed forrunning and operating the sensors. This provides additionalcommissioning and installation cost while increasing the manufacturingcost per wireless sensor. In addition, the issues that arise frommulti-master control from both the driver and sensor software remains asa lingering potential issue that is not addressed in such lightingsystems.

Existing wireless sensors are inherently costly due to the additionalprocessing, wireless communication modules, and power circuitry that areembedded within the design. The bulky architecture of the related artdesigns also leads to an increase in wireless communication traffic forlarger node systems. As a result, high communication traffic may limitthe number of wireless nodes that can be installed in a desired area.Therefore, the size of a multi-node wireless system may be reduced tolimit communication traffic.

The above information disclosed in this Background section is only forenhancement of understanding of the invention, and therefore it maycontain information that does not form the prior art that is alreadyknown to a person of ordinary skill in the art.

SUMMARY

Aspects of embodiments of the present invention are directed to a lightsystem including a modular controller and a wired sensor board. In someembodiments, the lighting system avoids the problems of large and bulkydesigns of the related art by having the sensors of the wired sensorboard powered off of an additional secondary winding from the lightdriver's main windings and by sending sensor information to the lightdriver through a wired connection; thus, eliminating the need to includesecondary power circuitry and wireless communication modules within thesensor board. Thus, the lighting system according to some embodiments ofthe present disclosure reduces (e.g., minimizes) the financial cost ofcommissioning and installation for large systems (e.g., for a lightingsystem with many nodes) because there are no additional wirelesscomponent in the sensor boards that need to be synchronized with thelight driver and the overall system. Furthermore, as the wired sensorboard communicates via a wired connection, in a large lighting systemwith many nodes, this reduces (e.g., significantly reduces) the wirelesscommunication traffic and system noise that would otherwise be presentin the designs of the related art.

According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, there isprovided a sensor board including: a plurality of sensors configured tosense parameters from the environment and to generate sensory outputs; atransmission circuit configured to receive sensory output from theplurality of sensors and to generate sensor data for transmission to alight driver through a wired connection; and a regulator configured toreceive a variable input voltage and to generate a regulated voltage forpowering the plurality of sensors and the transmission circuit.

In some embodiments, the plurality of sensors includes: an ambient lightsensor configured to detect ambient light intensity within theenvironment; and a motion sensor configured to detect motion within theenvironment.

In some embodiments, the transmission circuit is an analog circuit andthe sensor data includes analog signals.

In some embodiments, the transmission circuit is a digital circuit andthe sensor data includes digital signals.

In some embodiments, the regulator is configured to receive the variableinput voltage from a second secondary winding of a transformer of thelight driver, and the light driver is configured to drive a light sourcevia a first secondary winding of the transformer.

In some embodiments, the sensor board further includes: an indicatorlight configured to indicate a status of the sensor board by emittingdifferent colors.

In some embodiments, the transmission circuit is configured to drive theindicator light to emit a first color in response to the sensor boardreceiving electrical power, and to drive the indicator light to emit asecond color in response to a motion being detected by the sensor board.

In some embodiments, the transmission includes a two-stage amplifier foramplifying a sensory output of a motion sensor of the plurality ofsensors.

According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, there isprovided a lighting system node including: a sensor board including: aplurality of sensors configured to sense parameters from the environmentand to generate sensory outputs; a transmission circuit configured toreceive sensory output from the plurality of sensors and to generatesensor data for transmission through a wired connection; and a regulatorconfigured to receive a variable input voltage and to generate aregulated voltage for powering the plurality of sensors and thetransmission circuit; and a light driver electrically coupled to thesensor board and configured to receive the sensor data from the sensorboard and to generate a drive signal for powering a light source basedon the sensor data.

In some embodiments, the light driver includes: a converter configuredto generate the drive signal for powering the light source based on acontrol signal; a modular controller board electrically coupled to thesensor board through the wired connection and configured to receive thesensor data from the sensor board and to generate a first sensor controlsignal and a second sensor control signal corresponding to the sensordata; a primary controller configured to control the converter bygenerating the control signal based on the first sensor control signal;and an intensity controller configured to control at least one of alight intensity of the light source and a color shade of the lightsource in response to the second sensor control signal

In some embodiments, the converter includes: a transformer including aprimary winding, a first secondary winding electrically coupled to thelight source, and a second secondary winding electrically coupled to thesensor board, wherein the converter is configured to supply the drivesignal to the light source through the first secondary winding, and tosupply electrical power to the sensor board through the second secondarywinding.

In some embodiments, the modular controller board includes: a processorconfigured to process the sensor data and to control operation of thelight source by generating the sensor control signal based on the sensordata; and a wireless module configured to wirelessly receive an externalcommand from an external controller, and to relay the external commandto the processor for processing, and wherein the processor is furtherconfigured to generate the sensor control signal further based on theexternal command.

In some embodiments, the external controller includes a wireless walldimmer, and the external command includes a dimmer setting.

In some embodiments, the external controller includes a mobile deviceconfigured to execute a user control application that issues theexternal command in response to a user input.

In some embodiments, the wired connection includes a plurality of wireshaving a grounded shield.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, together with the specification, illustrateexample embodiments of the present invention, and, together with thedescription, serve to explain the principles of the present invention.

FIG. 1 illustrates a lighting system including a modular controllerboard and a wired sensor board, according to some example embodiments ofthe present disclosure.

FIG. 2A is a block diagram illustrating a more detail view of themodular controller board and the wired sensor board of the lightingsystem, according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2B is across-sectional view of a light driver of the lightingsystem, according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of the sensor board, according to someembodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a multi-node lighting system,according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The detailed description set forth below is intended as a description ofexample embodiments of a system and method for signal gain control in anLED driver, provided in accordance with the present invention and is notintended to represent the only forms in which the present invention maybe constructed or utilized. The description sets forth the features ofthe present invention in connection with the illustrated embodiments. Itis to be understood, however, that the same or equivalent functions andstructures may be accomplished by different embodiments that are alsointended to be encompassed within the spirit and scope of the invention.As denoted elsewhere herein, like element numbers are intended toindicate like elements or features.

Aspects of some embodiments of the present disclosure are directed to alight system including a modular controller (e.g., with wirelesscapability) and a wired sensor board. The lighting system according tothe present disclosure is a low cost and low complexity solution to thewireless sensor and LED driver systems of the related art. Theintegration of a wired sensor board serves to provide at least the sameamount of functionality as the wireless systems of the related art whilereducing the operational and installation costs that larger fragmentedsystems offer. A desirable feature of such a system is the simplicitythat is established from having the driver and processing software bethe central point for control of the entire lighting system.

According to some embodiments, the lighting system avoids the problemsof large and bulky designs of the related art by having the sensors ofthe wired sensor board powered off of an additional secondary windingfrom the light driver's main windings and by sending sensor informationto the light driver through a wired connection; thus, eliminating theneed to include secondary power circuitry and wireless communicationmodules within the sensor board. The solutions of the related artrequire AC power lines to be run to a wireless sensor that has its owndedicated driver to power the sensor as well as any wireless modulesneeded to communicate with the main control unit. In some embodiments,the use of a wired connection from the sensor board to the light driveralso eliminates the need to use batteries to independently power eachsensor within the sensor board.

Thus, the lighting system according to some embodiments of the presentdisclosure reduces (e.g., minimizes) the financial cost of commissioningand installation for large systems (e.g., for a lighting system withmany nodes) because there are no additional wireless component in thesensor boards that need to be synchronized with the light driver and theoverall system. Furthermore, as the wired sensor board communicates viaa wired connection, a wireless module is not required to transmitinformation; thus, the sensors of the sensor board do not contribute toadditional communication traffic. In a large lighting system (e.g., alighting system with many nodes), this reduces (e.g., significantlyreduces) the wireless communication traffic and system noise that wouldotherwise be present in the designs of the related art.

Additionally, the problems of having multi-master control in amulti-node system is eliminated as the sensor board and driver of eachnode operate under a single control software, rather than havingoverlapped independent software that try to issue commands on top ofeach other to control the same system.

FIG. 1 illustrates a lighting system 1 including a modular controllerboard 100 and a wired sensor board 200, according to some exampleembodiments of the present disclosure.

According to some embodiments, the lighting system 1 includes an inputsource 10, a light source 20, and a light driver 30 (e.g., aswitched-mode power supply system with negative injection) for poweringand controlling the brightness of the light source 20 based on thesignal from the input source 10.

The input source 10 may include an alternating current (AC) power sourcethat may operate at a 100 Vac (e.g., in Japan), 120 Vac (e.g., in theUS), a 240 Vac (e.g., in Europe), or 277 Vac (e.g., in large industrialplants). The input source 10 may also include a dimmer electricallypowered by said AC power sources. The dimmer may modify (e.g., cut/chopa portion of) the input AC signal according to a dimmer level beforesending it to the light driver 30, and thus variably reduces theelectrical power delivered to the light driver 30 and the light source20. In some examples, the dimmer may be a TRIAC or ELV dimmer, and maychop the front end or leading edge of the AC input signal. According tosome examples, the dimmer interface may be a rocker interface, a tapinterface, a slide interface, a rotary interface, or the like. A usermay adjust the dimmer level by, for example, adjusting a position of adimmer lever or a rotation of a rotary dimmer knob, or the like. Thelight source 20 may include one or more light-emitting-diodes (LEDs) oran arc or gas discharge lamp with electronic ballasts, such as highintensity discharge (HID) or fluorescent lights.

In some embodiments, the light driver 30 includes a rectifier 40, aconverter (e.g., a DC-DC converter) 50, and a primary controller (e.g.,a power factor correction (PFC) controller) 60.

The rectifier 40 provides a same polarity of output for either polarityof the AC signal from the input source 10. In some examples, therectifier 40 may be a full-wave circuit using a center-tappedtransformer, a full-wave bridge circuit with four diodes, a half-wavebridge circuit, or a multi-phase rectifier.

The converter 50 converts the rectified AC signal generated by therectifier 40 into a drive signal for powering and controlling thebrightness of the light source 20. The drive signal may depend on thetype of the one or more LEDs of the light source 20. For example, whenthe one or more LEDs of the light source 20 are constant current LEDsthe drive signal may be a variable voltage signal, and when the lightsource 20 requires constant voltage, the drive signal may be a variablecurrent signal. In some embodiments, the converter 50 includes a boostconverter for maintaining (or attempting to maintain) a constant DC busvoltage on its output while drawing a current that is in phase with andat the same frequency as the line voltage (by virtue of the primarycontroller 60). Another switched-mode converter (e.g., a transformer)inside the converter 50 produces the desired output voltage from the DCbus.

The primary controller 60 improves (e.g., increases) the power factor ofthe load on the input source 10 and reduces the total harmonicdistortions (THD) of the light driver 30. As non-linear loads includingthe rectifier 40 and the converter 50 distort the current drawn from theinput source 10, the primary controller 60 counteracts the distortionand raises the power factor. In some examples, other sources of currentdistortion may be input filter capacitors, input filter chokes, boostinductors, second stage transformers, and any non-linear elements orloads on the secondary side of a transformer inside the converter 50,which would be reflected over to the primary side of the transformer.Further, the main switch (e.g., the transistor) in the boost stage ofthe converter 50 may also distort the current if it is fed with aconstant duty cycle or constant on-time. The primary controller 60 maybe capable of counteracting current distortions regardless of thesource.

According to some embodiments, the primary controller 60 controls theconverter 50 to ensure that the input current IC to the converter 50matches the waveform of the input voltage VREC generated by therectifier 40. In so doing, the primary controller 60 may sense a currentIC flowing through an inductor of the converter 50 (e.g., the inductorof the boost circuit), and compare this sensed current against therectified input voltage VREC. Based on this comparison, the primarycontroller 60 may generate a control signal that controls the on-offtiming of a switching element in the converter 50 (e.g., the inductor ofthe boost circuit), which determines the shape of the input currentwaveform at the converter 50.

In some examples, the primary controller 60 operates by comparing thesensed inductor current flowing through the converter 50 with therectified input voltage, and controlling the main switch within theconverter 50 according to a modulation scheme (e.g., by controlling theswitching frequency, duty cycle, on-time or off-time, etc.) to obtain adesired output voltage for application to the light source 20.

According to some embodiments, the sensor board 200 collects sensoryinformation about the environment in which the light source 20 islocated and provides that information to the modular controller board100 through a wired connection. The modular controller board 100 in turnprocesses the sensory information and provides a corresponding controlsignal to the primary controller 60 for controlling the output of thelight driver 30. The transfer of data over a wired connection eliminatesthe need for a wireless communication module on the sensor board, whichreduces the cost, complexity, and size of the sensor board 200.

In some embodiments, the sensor board 200 does not use a separate ACpower source that is independent of that used by light driver 30, andinstead, receives its input electrical power from the light driver 30(e.g., through the wired connection). As a result, the sensor board 200does not require its own dedicated power supply and rectifier orinternal battery to power the sensors and internal circuitry of thesensor board. This further reduces the cost, complexity, and size of thesensor board 200.

FIG. 2A is a block diagram illustrating a more detail view of themodular controller board 100 and a wired sensor board 200 within thelighting system 1, according to some example embodiments of the presentdisclosure.

In some embodiments, the wired sensor board 200 houses one or moresensors including a motion sensor, an ambient sensor, and/or the like.In some embodiments, the wired sensor board 200 does not perform anydata processing of the sensor data on its own, and instead sends thesensor data to the light driver 30 for processing.

According to some embodiments, the modular controller board 100 of thelight driver 30 is electrically coupled to the sensor board 200 via awired connection (e.g., an electrical cable) 150, through which itreceives sensor data from the sensor board 200. The modular controllerboard 100 then generates a first sensor control signal (e.g., a PFCon/off signal) for transmission to the PFC controller 60 and/or a secondsensor control signal for transmission to the intensity controller 70,where both of the first and second sensor control signals correspond tothe sensor data. The intensity controller 70 controls the overall lightoutput, and in some instances the color shade as well. As more or lesspower is drawn by the light source 20, the primary controller 60instantaneously adjusts for the new output level. In some examples, whenthe ambient light sensor 212 detects a change in ambient light, themodular controller board 100 transmits a second sensor control signal tothe intensity controller 70 to signal the intensity control 70 to modify(e.g., increase or decrease) the light output intensity of the lightsource 20. Further, when the light source 20 is off and the motionsensor 214 detects movement, the modular controller board 100 transmitsa first sensor control signal to the PFC controller 60 to turn on thePFC controller 60 and to generate an appropriate voltage at the outputof the converter 50, and also transmits a second sensor control signalto the intensity controller 70 to control the intensity of the lightoutput of the light source 20. .

The modular controller board 100 includes a processor 110 that processesthe sensor data from the sensor board 200 and uses the data to controlthe operation of the light source 20 by changing the inputs to theintensity controller 70. In some embodiments, the modular controllerboard 100 also includes a wireless module 120 capable of wirelesslyreceiving an external command from an external controller 300, andrelaying the external command to the processor 110 for processing. Theprocessor 110 may further base the sensor control signal, which adjuststhe output of the light driver 30, on the external command. The wirelessmodule 120 may include a wireless transceiver capable of communicatingvia bluetooth, wifi, and/or the like. In some examples, the externalcontroller 300 may be a wireless wall dimmer or light switch thatwirelessly communicates a dimmer setting or an on/off state to thewireless module 120. The external controller 300 may also be a mobiledevice (e.g., a smart phone) running an application (e.g., a usercontrol application) that issues the external command (e.g., a commandto turn the light on/off or to change a dimmer setting) in response to auser input. In some examples, the external controller 300 may be awireless occupancy sensor, or time scheduling system that communicatesdifferent commands (e.g., light settings) based on time of day, date, orit could be a device to configure the sensor(s) or the power-supplyoutput, etc.

According to some embodiments, the light driver 30 delivers electricalpower to the sensor board 200 through the wired connection 150. In someembodiments, converter 50 includes a transformer 55 having a primarywinding 55 a, a first secondary winding 55 b electrically coupled to thelight source 20, and a second secondary winding 55 c electricallycoupled to the sensor board 200. Here, the primary winding 55 a and thefirst and second secondary windings 55 b and 55 c are all electricallyisolated from one another, but magnetically coupled to one another. Theconverter 50 supplies the drive signal to the light source 20 throughthe first secondary winding 55 b, and supplies electrical power to thesensor board 200, as a variable voltage, through the second secondarywinding 55 c. As such, the light driver 30 drives both the light source20 and the sensor board via the same transformer and input source 10. Asthe light source 20 and the sensor board 200 are powered by separatesecondary windings of the transformer 55, the sensor board 200 mayreceive power from the second secondary winding 55 c even when the lightsource 20 is off. For example, the light driver 30 may lower the drivevoltage to the light source 20 to such a low level that it can no longerforward bias the LEDs of the light source 20 resulting in the lightsource turning off; however, the voltage received through the secondsecondary winding 55 c may be sufficient to power the sensor board 200.In some examples, a switch may be placed in the path of the drive signalthat can stop the flow of current to the light source 20, while allowingpower delivery through the second secondary winding 55 c.

In some embodiments, the wired sensor board 200 houses a plurality ofsensors 210, which may include an ambient light sensor 212, a motionsensor 214, and/or the like. The sensors 210 sense certain parametersfrom the environment and generate corresponding sensory outputs. Forexample, the ambient light sensor 212 detects ambient light intensitywithin the environment (e.g., within the room in which the sensor isinstalled), and the motion sensor detects motion within the environment.The processor 110 may utilize the sensed ambient light intensity totarget a particular light output in the space. For example, theprocessor 110 may lower the drive signal thus reducing light output ofthe light source 20 at noon, and increase the drive signal and thus thelight output in the evening. In some embodiments, the sensor board 200also includes a transmission circuit 220 and a regulator 230.

The transmission circuit 220 may capture the sensory output from thesensors 210 and manipulate them as appropriate (e.g., amplify, change DClevel of, etc. the sensory output) to generate sensed data fortransmission to the light driver 30 through the wired connection 150. Insome embodiments, the sensor board 200 does not perform any dataprocessing of the sensed data on its own, and instead sends the senseddata to the light driver 30 for processing.

The regulator 230 receives the electrical power from the secondsecondary winding 55 c of the light driver 30, which may be a variableDC voltage, and generates one or more regulated voltages (e.g., one ormore regulated, constant, DC voltages) for powering the components ofthe sensor board 200 including the plurality of sensors 210 and thetransmission circuit 220. For example, the regulator 230 may receive aDC voltage (with ripples) from the transformer 55 that is from about 6 Vto about 15 V, and may generate a regulated 3.3 V DC voltage that powersthe sensors 210 as well as the transmission circuit 220. The regulator230 may be, for example, a linear regulator, a buck regulator, or abuck-boost regulator. As different sensors may have different voltagerequirements, having a regulator on the sensor board 200 that cangenerate the desired voltages specific to its sensor (as opposed tohaving the light driver 30 produce those specific voltages) allows thelight driver 30 to be compatible with a variety of sensor boards thatmay house different types of sensors with different voltagerequirements.

In some examples, the sensor board 200 also includes an indicator light240, such as a light emitting diode (LED), for providing a visualindication of the status of the sensor board 200 and/or one or more ofthe sensors 210 to a user. For example, the transmission circuit 220 isconfigured to drive the indicator light to emit a first color (e.g.,green) in response to the sensor board receiving electrical power (e.g.,being turned on), and to drive the indicator light to emit a secondcolor (e.g., blue) in response to a motion being detected by the motionsensor 214. However, visual indications are not limited to use ofdifferent colors, and may also include blinking at differentfrequencies.

In some examples, the wired connection 150 may include a plurality ofwires for delivering power to the regulator 230 from the secondsecondary winding 55 c and for carrying the signals from the sensorboard 200 to the modular controller board 100. As the second secondarywinding 55 c may produce a variable DC output with some ripple, toreduce or substantially reduce noise in the signals transmitting thesensor data, the wires are ground shielded (e.g., shielded by aconductive layer that is connected to electrical ground); however,embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto. Forexample, the wires may have a ground shield to form a shielded cable. Insome embodiments, each sensor of the plurality of sensors has adedicated wired connection to modular controller board 100. The lengthof the wired connection 150 may vary depending on the desired distancebetween the sensor board 200 and the light driver 30 in a givenapplication.

FIG. 2B is across-sectional view of the light driver 30, according tosome example embodiments of the present disclosure.

In some embodiments, the light driver 30 includes a main board (e.g., amain printed circuit board (PCB)) 32 on which the rectifier 40, theconverter 50, and the primary controller 60 are positioned (e.g., areintegrated), and the modular controller board 100 includes a secondaryboard (e.g., a secondary PCB or daughter card) 102 on which theprocessor 110 and the wireless module 120 are positioned (e.g., areintegrated). The secondary board 102 is stacked vertically above themain board 32 and is electrically coupled to it through a plurality ofvertical conductors (e.g., conductive vias) 34; however, embodiments ofthe present disclosure are not limited thereto. For example, thecontroller board 102 may be positioned perpendicular to the main board32 and be connected at the edges of the controller board 102, thuseliminating the need for connectors and further reducing cost andcomplexity. The use of the secondary board 102 makes the design of thelight driver 30 modular and makes it easier to creates variants of thelight driver. For example, if an application does not require a wirelessmodule, the modular controller board 100 may be replaced with one thatdoes not include the wireless module 120. Similarly, if a differentprocessor or wireless module are desired, the modular controller board100 may be swapped out with a different module. In each example, thecircuitry on the main board 32 remains the same. In addition to creatinga modular design, the vertically stacked or perpendicularly arrangedmain and secondary boards 32 and 102 allow for three-dimensional ofcomponents, which improves space utilization, and allows the lightdriver 30 to have a compact design (e.g., one which fits within a commongangbox).

As will be recognized by a person of ordinary skill in the art, whileFIG. 2B illustrates a particular arrangement of components of the lightdriver 30, this is merely for illustration purposes. For example, theposition of the rectifier 40, the converter 50, and the primarycontroller 60 on the main board 32 may be changed in any suitablemanner.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of the sensor board 200, according to someembodiments of the present disclosure.

In some embodiments, the sensors 210 and transmission circuit 220utilize the regulated voltage Vreg, which is produced by the voltageregulator 230, as their power source.

A lens 250 may be positioned in front of the ambient light sensor (ALS)212 to focus the light incident on the ambient light sensor 212. Withthe lens 250, the ambient light sensor may mainly sense the lightemitted from the area in front of the lens as opposed to light incidentfrom the sides. In some examples, the ambient light sensor 212 may havea high impedance output; as such, a current buffer (e.g., a unity gaincurrent buffer) 252 may be utilized to provide the low-impedance output,which can drive a signal (e.g., the ambient light sensor data SDAL)across a wire of the electrical cable 150 and which can improve noiseimmunity.

The output of the motion sensor may pass through two stages ofamplification (i.e., 254 and 256) before being transmitted through acorresponding wire of the electrical cable 150. As it is desired totrigger off of movement and not static objects in the environment, thefirst amplifier circuit 254 generates an amplified signal when thesensor output crosses a threshold (at one or more of a falling edge anda rising edge). The second amplifier circuit 256, which may be ACcoupled to the first amplifier circuit 254, may further amplify thesignal prior to transmitting it (i.e., the motion sensor data SDM)through the electrical cable 150.

The current buffer 252, the first and second amplifier circuits 254 and256 and the related components (e.g., resistors R1 to R4 and capacitorsC1 to C4) may comprise the transmission circuit 220.

In some examples, the output of the second amplifier circuit 256 ispassed onto the light indicator circuit 258, which can drive theindicator light 240 to change color when motion is detected.

In some examples, the transmission circuit 220 may be an entirely analogcircuit (as, e.g., shown in FIG. 3) that produces the sensed data asanalog signals to be sent over the electrical cable 150. However,embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto, and thetransmission circuit 220 may be an entirely digital circuit or acombination of analog and digital circuits.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a multi-node lighting system 1′,according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

In some embodiments, multi-node lighting system 1′ includes a pluralityof nodes 5, each of which includes a light driver 30, a light source 20,and a sensor board 200. Each node 5 may have a single input source 10and be controlled independently. Because the sensor connections in eachof the nodes 5 are all wired, this reduces the overall system noiselevel that would otherwise be present in a multi-node lighting systemutilizing wireless sensors. This reduces or substantially reduces thenoise impact of the multi-node lighting system 1′ on other electronicdevices present in the environment in which the system 1′ exists.Additionally, the use of wired connections reduces overall power usageas compared to the wireless sensor connections of the related art.

As recognized by a person of ordinary skill in the art, while FIG. 4illustrates four nodes 5, this is merely for illustrative purposes, andthe multi-node lighting system 1′ may have any suitable number of nodes5.

As described above, the wired lighting system drastically reduceshardware complexity and cost of the sensor board by utilizing a wiredconnection rather than a wireless one, by externalizing the dataprocessing and power generation to the light driver. Labor cost fromcommissioning and installation are also reduced since the wired lightingsystem 1 eliminates additional external system components which wouldotherwise be implemented to independently operate the sensors from thedriver and light source. Further, multi-master control issues areprevented since all processing aspects are controlled by the singularmicroprocessor and software of the modular controller board.Additionally, removing the wireless modules from the sensor board helpsto reduced wireless traffic and noise injection from the high bandwidthsensors.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularembodiments and is not intended to be limiting of the inventive concept.As used herein, the singular forms “a” and “an” are intended to includethe plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicatesotherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “include”,“including”, “comprises”, and/or “comprising”, when used in thisspecification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps,operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude thepresence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps,operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof. As used herein,the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more ofthe associated listed items. Expressions such as “at least one of”, whenpreceding a list of elements, modify the entire list of elements and donot modify the individual elements of the list. Further, the use of“may” when describing embodiments of the inventive concept refers to“one or more embodiments of the inventive concept”. Also, the term“exemplary” is intended to refer to an example or illustration.

It will be understood that when an element or layer is referred to asbeing “on”, “connected to”, “coupled to”, or “adjacent” another elementor layer, it can be directly on, connected to, coupled to, or adjacentthe other element or layer, or one or more intervening elements orlayers may be present. When an element or layer is referred to as being“directly on,” “directly connected to”, “directly coupled to”, or“immediately adjacent” another element or layer, there are nointervening elements or layers present.

As used herein, the terms “substantially”, “about”, and similar termsare used as terms of approximation and not as terms of degree, and areintended to account for the inherent variations in measured orcalculated values that would be recognized by those of ordinary skill inthe art.

As used herein, the terms “use”, “using”, and “used” may be consideredsynonymous with the terms “utilize”, “utilizing”, and “utilized”,respectively.

The light driver and/or any other relevant devices or componentsaccording to embodiments of the present invention described herein, suchas the processor, the wireless module, and the primary controller, maybe implemented by utilizing any suitable hardware, firmware (e.g., anapplication-specific integrated circuit), software, or a suitablecombination of software, firmware, and hardware. For example, thevarious components of the independent multi-source display device may beformed on one integrated circuit (IC) chip or on separate IC chips.Further, the various components of the light driver may be implementedon a flexible printed circuit film, a tape carrier package (TCP), aprinted circuit board (PCB), or formed on the same substrate. Further,the various components of the light LED driver may be a process orthread, running on one or more processors, in one or more computingdevices, executing computer program instructions and interacting withother system components for performing the various functionalitiesdescribed herein. The computer program instructions are stored in amemory which may be implemented in a computing device using a standardmemory device, such as, for example, a random access memory (RAM). Thecomputer program instructions may also be stored in other non-transitorycomputer-readable media such as, for example, a CD-ROM, flash drive, orthe like. Also, a person of skill in the art should recognize that thefunctionality of various computing devices may be combined or integratedinto a single computing device, or the functionality of a particularcomputing device may be distributed across one or more other computingdevices without departing from the scope of the exemplary embodiments ofthe present invention.

While this invention has been described in detail with particularreferences to illustrative embodiments thereof, the embodimentsdescribed herein are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the scopeof the invention to the exact forms disclosed. Persons skilled in theart and technology to which this invention pertains will appreciate thatalterations and changes in the described structures and methods ofassembly and operation can be practiced without meaningfully departingfrom the principles, spirit, and scope of this invention, as set forthin the following claims and equivalents thereof.

What is claimed is:
 1. A sensor board comprising: a plurality of sensors configured to sense parameters from the environment and to generate sensory outputs; a transmission circuit configured to receive sensory output from the plurality of sensors and to generate sensor data for transmission to a light driver through a wired connection; and a regulator configured to receive a variable input voltage and to generate a regulated voltage for powering the plurality of sensors and the transmission circuit.
 2. The sensor board of claim 1, wherein the plurality of sensors comprises: an ambient light sensor configured to detect ambient light intensity within the environment; and a motion sensor configured to detect motion within the environment.
 3. The sensor board of claim 1, wherein the transmission circuit is an analog circuit and the sensor data comprises analog signals.
 4. The sensor board of claim 1, wherein the transmission circuit is a digital circuit and the sensor data comprises digital signals.
 5. The sensor board of claim 1, wherein the regulator is configured to receive the variable input voltage from a second secondary winding of a transformer of the light driver, and wherein the light driver is configured to drive a light source via a first secondary winding of the transformer.
 6. The sensor board of claim 1, further comprising: an indicator light configured to indicate a status of the sensor board by emitting different colors.
 7. The sensor board of claim 6, wherein the transmission circuit is configured to drive the indicator light to emit a first color in response to the sensor board receiving electrical power, and to drive the indicator light to emit a second color in response to a motion being detected by the sensor board.
 8. The sensor board of claim 1, wherein the transmission comprises a two-stage amplifier for amplifying a sensory output of a motion sensor of the plurality of sensors.
 9. A lighting system node comprising: a sensor board comprising: a plurality of sensors configured to sense parameters from the environment and to generate sensory outputs; a transmission circuit configured to receive sensory output from the plurality of sensors and to generate sensor data for transmission through a wired connection; and a regulator configured to receive a variable input voltage and to generate a regulated voltage for powering the plurality of sensors and the transmission circuit; and a light driver electrically coupled to the sensor board and configured to receive the sensor data from the sensor board and to generate a drive signal for powering a light source based on the sensor data.
 10. The lighting system node of claim 9, wherein the light driver comprises: a converter configured to generate the drive signal for powering the light source based on a control signal; a modular controller board electrically coupled to the sensor board through the wired connection and configured to receive the sensor data from the sensor board and to generate a first sensor control signal and a second sensor control signal corresponding to the sensor data; a primary controller configured to control the converter by generating the control signal based on the first sensor control signal; and an intensity controller configured to control at least one of a light intensity of the light source and a color shade of the light source in response to the second sensor control signal.
 11. The lighting system node of claim 10, wherein the converter comprises: a transformer comprising a primary winding, a first secondary winding electrically coupled to the light source, and a second secondary winding electrically coupled to the sensor board, wherein the converter is configured to supply the drive signal to the light source through the first secondary winding, and to supply electrical power to the sensor board through the second secondary winding.
 12. The lighting system node of claim 10, wherein the modular controller board comprises: a processor configured to process the sensor data and to control operation of the light source by generating the sensor control signal based on the sensor data; and a wireless module configured to wirelessly receive an external command from an external controller, and to relay the external command to the processor for processing, and wherein the processor is further configured to generate the sensor control signal further based on the external command.
 13. The lighting system node of claim 12, wherein the external controller comprises a wireless wall dimmer, and wherein the external command comprises a dimmer setting.
 14. The lighting system node of claim 12, wherein the external controller includes a mobile device configured to execute a user control application that issues the external command in response to a user input.
 15. The lighting system node of claim 9, wherein the wired connection comprises a plurality of wires having a grounded shield. 